Let's think about how we might improve our fundraising focus. Our concentration will be on growing the person, shifting the focus, managing the processes, and leading the organization from the heart and head.

There are four essential elements to every successful capital campaign: the Case; Leadership; Prospects; and, the Plan. This article is third in a series addressing each element and will focus on the process for identifying and soliciting individual major gift prospects in a capital campaign.

At GuideStar, we believe that transparency is vital to the health of the nonprofit sector. What do we mean by transparency? Borrowing from Webster’s, we mean the state of being “free from pretense or deceit.” For charities, that means being open about programs and finances and readily sharing that information with donors, funders, regulators, and the general public.

As a national consulting firm, our team of professionals conducts business in a wide variety of communities across the country. As we compare notes among ourselves, we discover there are a few opinions often voiced by the clients we serve and the non-profit executives we meet. One that seems to come up in most communities is when an organization’s representative says, “Great news! Billy Big Bucks lives in our town! We can ask them to fund this project.” “Billy Big Bucks” is my code name for any wealthy celebrity, whether a movie star, athlete, author, or any other profession.